Let the Scenes of Memories to fly with the Majesty of the Theater of Dreams.
- "The Ytse Jam
". A Sdrawkcab and Meaningful Name for an awesome instrumental. - Images and Words:
- "Metropolis Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper" is so good, it got a sequel in a whole album. Special mention goes to John Myung's bass solo in the middle.
- "Learning to Live" and James LaBrie's famous F♯5.
- It's telling that "Pull Me Under" was the "hit" in their compilation album - Dream Theater's Greatest Hit (and 21 Other Pretty Cool Songs).
- "Metropolis Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper"
- It may take a few listens to get into, but Awake is an amazing follow-up to Images and Words and can be a contender for the band's best album.
- "6:00". The opening drum beat lets you know you're in for good stuff.
- "Caught in a Web", one of their first songs to feature John Petrucci using a 7-string guitar and holy hell, does he make fantastic use of it.
- "Innocence Faded" is perhaps the best vocal performance you'll hear from James LaBrie. And if you think he can't sing well live after his vocal cord injury in The '90s, the live version from 2007's Score would like a word with you.
- While split up in three parts, the "A Mind Beside Itself" suite ("Erotomania"-"Voices"-"The Silent Man") is pure sheer of awesome.
- "Lie", with its powerful singing and EPIC guitar solo.
- And "Lifting Shadows Off a Dream".
- "6:00"
- "Eve" off the rarely seen The Silent Man EP is possibly the most beautiful instrumental Dream Theater has written to date.
- "A Change of Seasons": 23 minutes of awesomeness talking about the cycle of life itself. Three words: "Innocence caressing me..."
- Falling into Infinity tends to get a lot of flack for its radio-friendly sound, but that doesn't stop it from having its share of awesome. For example, we have the 12 beautiful minutes of "Trial of Tears".
- WEL-COME-IN-A-NEW-MI-LE-NNI-UM-!!
- "Hollow Years" is a pretty good song on the album. Then there's this live version, particularly the extended guitar solo in the middle.
- "Lines in the Sand", complete with a guest voice from King's X.
- WEL-COME-IN-A-NEW-MI-LE-NNI-UM-!!
- The entirety of Metropolis Part II: Scenes from a Memory. The whole album is often seen as Dream Theater's magnum opus, if not the greatest progressive metal album of all time.
- "Overture 1928", while not the longest or flashiest song technically, does an amazing job of mashing up the melodies of the other songs on the album in a way that feels completely natural and is completely unnoticeable.
- "The Dance of Eternity", which has 106 time signature changes in six minutes. Both Myung and Portnoy deserve mention.
- "The Spirit Carries On" is Sweet Dreams Fuel in musical form, a beautiful Power Ballad with Gospel elements letting you know that death is not something to fear. Hearing it performed live, with the crowd singing along and waving lighters and phones around, can be a magical experience.
- "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence":
- The title track(s). One song, eight parts and 42 minutes of awesome, making it the greatest example of Epic Rocking in the band's history. For maximum awesomeness, listen to all of the parts non-stop (if necessary, take a music-editing program and edit all the song parts together) for an absolutely epic joyride.
- "The Glass Prison", the first part of the Twelve-Step Suite, also deserves a special mention. The intro alone - which is admittedly quite long, but it is Dream Theater - is more awesome than some bands cram into one album.
- "The Great Debate" sounds like it's building up to the epic clash of ideals between the two sides of the titular debate (stem cell research). It's also very impressive lyrically, taking what was a highly controversial topic (at least when the song was written) and managing to present arguments both for and against it in a balanced, non-partisan way.
- The title track(s)
- The Darker and Edgier Train of Thought gives us "This Dying Soul", the second part of Mike's Twelve-Step Suite.
- "Stream of Consciousness" is one of the band's best instrumentals.
- "In the Name of God". The message is delivered in a powerful way, and this 14-minute epic's ending is simply brilliant.
- "Stream of Consciousness"
- "Octavarium" is widely considered to be one of their most epic songs. It is a 24-minute, 5-movement suite which ties the whole album together.
- "Panic Attack". The entire freaking song absolutely rules, but the bassline deserves special mention.
- From that very album, "These Walls", while not quite on the same incredible level as the title track, is a fantastic, beautiful song on its own.
- Sure it sounds like a song that should be on a U2 album, but I Walk Beside You is perhaps the most inspirational song Dream Theater has ever written.
- Two words: "Sacrificed Sons". Especially the second half of the song.
- The second act of their 20th anniversary concert features them playing with a full symphony orchestra. If you think DT isn't awesome per se, then wait until you hear "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence" and "Octavarium". And for that matter, "Metropolis". It is the greatest possible way to finish an album ever.
- "Constant Motion", one of Dream Theater's few singles, combines the speed of thrash metal with the technicality that is their hallmark, with a refrain worthy of power metal. "Forevermore! Into the night, blistering!"
- "The Dark Eternal Night" is definitely one of the standout moments in Systematic Chaos. It has a groove that makes it instantly catchy, while still sounding dark and heavy. During the verses, the distorted vocals portray the dark lyrics very well by sounding very much like an angry god who wants revenge in his people. Finally comes the amazing chorus and insane instrumental section. Mike Portnoy's stellar double-bass drumming also deserves special mention.
- Black Clouds and Silver Linings boasts "The Best of Times": an anthem to fathers everywhere. Jordan Rudess' expressive piano parts and James LaBrie's emotional vocals make this song a very powerful Tear Jerker.
- The same album opens with "A Nightmare to Remember", which would not sound out of place on Train of Thought. The song boasts what is possibly the heaviest drumming in the band's discography. The serene-sounding middle part also deserves special mention with a chord progression that takes you to another dimension.
- "The Shattered Fortress": the Grand Finale of Mike's Twelve-Step Suite, which reprises sections from all of the previous songs in the suite, while still having its own unique sections that sound fresh and triumphant. While it is very heavy, the lyrics make it clear that our protagonist has conquered his addiction and is now a better person because of it.
- "The Count of Tuscany" is a sprawling 20-minute piece which hits all the right notes with fast paced sections, slow paced sections, amazing guitar and keyboard work and an incredible three minute section of pure ambiance. A more than worthy send off to Mike Portnoy.
- The same album opens with "A Nightmare to Remember"
- Quite a few fans had doubts about whether they could still be good after Mike Portnoy's departure. And then "On the Backs of Angels" was released.
- Three words: "Breaking All Illusions", which somehow manages to have even more time signature changes than "The Dance of Eternity".
- Four more words: "Bridges in the Sky". A very Earth-loving song.
- One final word: "Outcry". The anthemic chorus is enough to put it on this list, but wait until you hear the instrumental section, which is a technical masterpiece.
- Three words: "Breaking All Illusions"
- "Illumination Theory", especially the powerful message and the recurring Epic Riff.
- "The Enemy Inside" perfectly mixes Thrash Metal with Dream Theater's Signature Style. The song is very fast-paced with aggressive riffs at every turn, but there are still plenty of dynamic guitar and keyboard solos to still make it sound like Dream Theater. Mike Mangini's frantic drumming also deserves special mention for adding to the intensity without completely overdoing it.
- That song is then followed by "The Looking Glass", which is an fantastic tribute to Rush. It has a main riff that sounds like something that the Canadian legends could have written. The metal-sounding verses provide a great contrast to the melodic chorus. John Petrucci's amazing guitar work (especially his very lyrical guitar solo) deserves special mention.
- For those who love instrumentals, the self-titled album boasts "False Awakening Suite" and "Enigma Machine". The former is one of the most epic opening tracks in any album ever. The latter puts you right into a James Bond movie with suspenseful riffs and explosive solos (from every member of the band) everywhere. Anyone who still has doubts with Mike Mangini should listen to these two instrumentals (especially the latter) and reconsider their thoughts on him.
- "The Enemy Inside"
- Prior to The Astonishing's release, two amazing songs from the album were revealed: "The Gift of Music" and "Moment of Betrayal". Both songs set the bar really high for the album. Meanwhile, "Three Days" is an awesomely intimidating Villain Song that establishes Lord Nefaryus as a great villain. The ending of the song deserves special mention for combining a ton of different music styles into something that makes this song one of the high points in The Astonishing.
- Distance Over Time:
- "Barstool Warrior" is often considered to be one of the highlights of the album thanks to its beautiful and emotional sound and lyrics. It starts off as a Tear Jerker before turning Heartwarming in the outro.
- "At Wit's End" opens with intensity and keeps it going all the way through the intro to an operatic chorus before moving into a beautiful bridge and outro two-thirds of the way through.
